If Link is your favorite video game character you really don’t want to miss any Link cosplay at the event. Others at PAX are taking photos of Link cosplay they see and posting to instagram and twitter, but the real magic is when they post to /wheres.link on the local web. On /wheres.link you can find all the Link cosplay to be found at PAX and people are discussing and asking questions of the players. “Slash wheres Link” becauses a pop-up community for all the Link fans at PAX. By posting on /wheres.link all the Link cosplayers become…well… linked… and decide to get together for a massive Link photo shoot at noon on Saturday. This becomes an historic event and /wheres.link shoots to the top of the front page of the local web. Others at PAX see it at the top and get hyped about the photo shoot and being in the presence of 100+ Links.

This event wasn’t listed on the PAX website, or mobile app. It wasn’t on a schedule or attached to a twitter hashtag. It was the product of the type of organic community that can happen on the local web.

The first step to getting an instant community like this is to bring people together in the same place, which PAX has done. But the local web allows people to find others with similar interests and interact and organize. No app needed except a web browser. /wheres.link wasn’t in planning for months before PAX. It happened when one person posted a photo of Link to the url localweb.is/wheres.link. One Link fan browsing the local web noticed it and thought it was a cool idea so posted a photo too. Then another.

There is a sense of spontaneity and DIY attitude that is missing from our current online life. We have tons of apps with narrow and carefully curated experiences, but few opportunities to break out of those boxes and do what we want, whatever it is.

The local web as far as social media goes is a sandbox experience. It is what you make of it, whether that is for gathering 100 Links together into the most epic of photos… or any of the other 248 uses currently listed here.

And we are just getting started.

Note: PAX is not officially affiliated with the local web. The above is just an example of what could happen when the local web launches at PAX East in April.

We are building the local web and sharing a new way to use it each day.

Lend and borrow tools with your neighbors

Building or fixing something yourself can be incredibly empowering. But if you are just getting started it takes a serious investment in the right tools…some of which you might only use once. This creates a barrier to actually getting anything done.

On /tool-exchange you can ask to borrow a specific tool and others can fill the request if they have it. No complicated renting or e-commerce solution is needed; these are your neighbors, they want to help. And you can return the favor when they need to borrow something you have.

You can also easily develop good social conventions like including a note for when you expect to return a tool. The owner can then reply to let people know it’s been returned, which creates just enough social pressure to ensure people get their tools back and a record of transfer if any problems arise.

And via /tool-exchange you get to meet other builders and makers within walking distance. People of all skill levels. Once the ice has been broken with a tool exchange, there is an opportunity for people to become mentors or mentees and learn new skills.

We are building the local web and sharing a new way to use it each day.

Art that matters

There are thousands of local, built from scratch art galleries around the world. Do it yourself isn’t just their motto, it’s their lifeblood. They focus on and pay attention to things that other people miss. Their work matters because they shed light on our humanity, on our desire to connect to each other…and they do so with the humans and spaces right around them.

A Localweb.is URL like /diy-galleries can exist in every community as a way to connect people to what’s happening around them. Showing some new prints down the street? Add a photo + directions. Want to support local artists as they create? Offer your time / donations to make sure works get completed, without requiring them to setup a kickstarter for every new project.

And long live DIY.

We are building the local web and sharing a new way to use it each day.

All the places

Skateboarding culture is constantly in flux. When the lights go out, when the noise fades, it’s not about competitions or sponsorships. It’s about that kid throwing 3am nollie impossibles over and over again on the Queensboro bridge on-ramp median at 2nd Ave & East 59th.

Skating thrives on staying under the radar. An unlisted Localweb.is URL like u/secret-skates can be used by skaters in Oakland to track spots and show unique, place-specific tricks, or in New York to quickly scout out a few block radius for an informal weekend competition.

We are building the local web and sharing a new way to use it each day.